New York mayor Zohran Mamdani made his way to a Brooklyn soundstage facility on Thursday to unveil his latest appointment, the new leader of the city’s film office.
Rafael Espinal, who led the Freelancer’s Union for the last five years, has been tapped to lead the Mamdani administration’s Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME), which coordinates with labor unions and studio production in the city.
“How do we make it easier for artists who are already here to act upon their imagination?” Mamdani prefaced, holding court at Samson Stages alongside speaker of the New York City Council Julie Menin and referencing his time as a former production assistant himself.
“City Hall is tackling the cost-of-living crisis so that artists can raise their children here, that they can afford studios and homes here and that they can take fast and free buses to shoots here,” the mayor elaborated. “But we don’t want our efforts to be limited solely to making New York affordable to those making the arts. We also want to make New York affordable to make the arts as well.”
Espinal said he hopes “to help build a city that every New Yorker — whether you’re on the way to become the next Tom Cruise or you’re on the set as a grip — you can afford to live in.”
The Mayor described Espinal as an official who would help “bridge the worlds of arts and politics” and framed the pick as part of his affordability agenda.
Espinal, formerly a member of the State Assembly and a member of the New York City Council, will succeed Pat Kaufman as commissioner of MOME. He previously partnered with the media and entertainment office on the Freelancers Hub initiative, a coworking space in Industry City, and had sponsored the creation of the city’s The Office of Nightlife.
Espinal had also served on Mamdani’s transition committee after the candidate’s November win over former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa. At MOME, Espinal will report to deputy mayor for economic justice Julie Su, who added: “One of our top priorities is to make sure all of government works together and with the intention to grow industries that make this city vibrant, that reflect its beauty and creativity, and that bring good union jobs to New York City. MOME must lead in this space.”
Like California, New York state has also seen production spend declines as studio slates have contracted. Last year, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a budget that raised the cap on the state’s film and TV incentive to $800 million, above even California’s $750 million program.
But while New York saw a 17 percent year-over-year in TV and movie shoot count in the third quarter of 2025, production spend also fell 32 percent to $849 million in the quarter, per industry tracker ProdPro.
Mamdani added in a statement, “As commissioner, Rafael Espinal will support our city’s artists and help ensure New York City remains a place that every artist can call home. He has led this work nationally, fighting for the rights and protections of independent workers and he will bring that fight right here to New York City.”
